Process of making or improving wells.



No. s7|,429.

Patented Apr. 9, IBM.

J. E. BACON.

PROCESS OF MAKING 0R IMPROVING WELLS.

(Application filed June 14, 1898.)

(No Model.)

and in this instancethe water carries the sand allows the water to pass upfrom the sand U ITED STATES- PATENT ()FFICE JAMES E/BAGON, OF. NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO BACON AIR LIFT COMPANY, OF

NEW. JERSEY.

Pnocsss 0F MAKING oR-mpnovme WELLS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Application filed Jun'elt, 1898.

To'wlt whom it may concern.- T

Be it known that I, JAMES E, BACON, a citizen of the United'States, residing in the city and State of New York, have invented a Process of Making or Improving Wells, of which the following is a Specification. f

There are many places where a water-bearing sand is covered with an impervious clay or hard pan of considerable depth, and under these circumstances the water-bearing sand is often very fine, so that it fills in and obstructs the well even when a fine netting is employed or when the well-tube is slotted vertically or longitudinally with very narrow slots, and the consequence is that the well tube that passes into the line sand frequently has to be withdrawn and cleaned or else repaired owing to the sand cutting the pipe at places where theslot may have become sufliciently wide to allow the sand to pass through,

along with it and, not only fills up the well, but injures the pumping'apparatus in consequence of considerable of the sand passing oif with the water that is raised. The present improvement relates to a well passing down through the'imperviousclay or hard pan to near the bottom thereof, there being alarge chamber excavated in the impervious strata, and a suflicient pressure of water is maintained in the chamber to prevent the head of water in the water-bearing sand breaking through the bottom of the chamber, and after such chamber has been excavated by the action of water and an apparatus hereinafter described the bottom of the chamber is broken up by water-pressure, so that the top of the water-bearing sand becomes the bottom of the chamber, and gravity will retain the sand in position, and the extent of area of the bottom of the chamber gradually into the chamber without the sand being carried with the water to the discharging apparatus, so that strainers of every character are dispensed with, the water being drawn from the chamber excavated in the impervious strata.

In the drawing I have illustrated the present improvement bya vertical section.

The impervious strata of clay or hard pan Patent No. 071,429, dated April 9, 1-901.

Berle-1 to. 688,431. on model.)

is'illustrated at A, and above this usually is a layer of gravel B and loam or earth at C. These vary in relative thickness at different places, and the water-bearing strata is represeuted at D, the same being composed of sand, which usually is quite fine.

In preparing the well I sink a suitable pipe E of suflicient size to contain the water-raising apparatus, which may be an ordinary pumping device or an air-lift water-raising apparatus, and in some instances the pressure of water in the water-raising strata is sufficient forthe watertooverflowatthesurfaceof the ground. This pipeE isnot extended down tothe water-bearingstrataD," butitis stopped at a sufiicient distance from the same fora chamber F to be excavated, and this is eifectedin the following manner: A water-supply pipe G is'provided with a flexible nozzle H at the lower end, which nozzle is advantag'eously of rubber with a metallic armor I, that is flexible, and the rod K extends. down the well, either inside or outside the water-pipe G and connects with a flexible band or rope O, that is fastened tothe exterior end of the nozzle H, so that by the lever M the flexible nozzle H can be curved more or less, as required; and I remark that the height of the well-tube E is to be such that a column of water contained thereinrwill exert a greater pressure than the pressure of the water 1n the water-baring strata D, and the pipe G is propand discharged from the nozzleH, and the pipe G is revolved progressively, so that the water issuing from the nozzle H dissolves and washes away the impervious clay in the strata 'A, and the water holding this clay in suspension rises in the well-pipe E and runs away and may pass into a settling-tank in which the solid materials subside, and the water is again heated and forced down the pipe G, and these operations are continued until a chamber F of the desired size is'excavated by the action of the water. It is important that the bottom of this chamber F should not be disturbed down to the water-bearing strata until the 45 a late through the sand-atv the bottom of the;

a chamber F-hssbeen excavated to the i size, and then the impervious lay'el'jet the the pipe E conhterbalancing the pressure of Ibotto'mcfthechambereF is to be broken. up, "so as to open the ob amber to the'st'rata etwater-bearing sand. I In consequenceof the column of water in the water in th'esand D there'will be no tend 1 ency for the sand to fill into the chamber F,

andthe bottom of the chamber F can be 02-? cavated in any desired manner. I I, however, prefer to pump out water from the pipe E until the level of the same is lowered anfllciently i for the pressure of water in the water-boa ing the upperend of the well-pipe E or being pumped on-t of such pipe E until the water becomes'clear, the manipulation otthe'noz-r zle H being continueduntil .11 the solublematter or the impervious clay or strata-isremoved from the chamber F, and the amide! the water-bearing strata forms the bottomot a f such chamber, after which water -elevating:

mechanism, such asa pump or air-lift, to

be introduced into the well E to take the water-supply from the chamber Fand deliver' the same at any-desired elevation, 3; If the water-pressure in the water-bearing.

" stratum is known, as will frequently jbe th'e case, ltis advisableto keep a depth 0t matter inthechamber'F and pipe]: equivalent, .to er-greater than the pressure in-the water,- bearing ,stratum during formationjand enlargementof the chamber', and subsequently when the well is completed 'andin operation the water shouldjn'ot'be drawn-from the well,

carried downward into the chamber; There fore chamber F is to be of such a size, ihaving regard to the volume of water to be taken ofl from the well,- that the waterfwill percochamber F without materially disturbing thesame,wherebythe,chamberwillbemaintained substantially free from'sand that would other wise rise in thesaidcharnber and finally ychokeit... I ,have rep nted at 3aconnectiontothe" water-pipe G, through which hot water can be supplied to wash and dissolve the clay of the impervious strata in formingthe chamber F, and I remark that usually the nozzle H will be directed downward'in the first part ofthe excavating operation, and then it bottom of the chamber and the water-bearing stratum and washing the same away by the V I 'actionfof water, substantially as setforth at such a 'rateas to cause the sand or oose a w material in thewater-bearing stratum toibe relatively more impervicusstratumiand into a relatively less impervious wateribearing ,pervious stratum atthe toot-of. the well, and

gradually turned into a'horizontalposiitionas the pipe and nozzle'are'r evclvedto cause a jet of water to wash away the impervious clay and excavate the chamber-1 F without such chamber becoming filled durin the operation by the fine'sand of the strata r 4 In instances where a torpedo has been exthe waterandiearthy material can be-pu mped ontto'whatever extent is required, or a pressure may be obtained thereby to-break up the "bottom of the chamber revious to the mateout.- 1

I -clai'm as'my inventiong v 1. The method herein specified-of forming being softened byt e water-and washed a chamber in an imperviousclay stratumat thebottom of,a well, consisting in forcing through a pipe heated water and directing the same by a nozzle upon the clay to dissolve the same and revolving. the pipe and nozzle so as to act around within the chamber a d allowing the hot water and earthy materials dissolved by the same flow'away or be re- Vmoved from" the top of the well, breaking'upthe stratum of impervious clay between the 2. The method of forming a well through a stratum, which consists in washing outaud enlarging by the dynamic forceof water an artificial chamberin the-relatively. more imseparated by a thin wall or bottom from the said water-bearing stratum, and subsequently j opening communication through the said wall v 'or zbottpm for the passage of water from the saidwater-bearing stratum into the said chamber, substantially without disturbing the material of the said water-bearing stratum, for

the purposes-set forth a. it

Signedby methis 2d day'of June,x189 8.

. w v J .--E.-BAO ON.

witnessesz 'i' 

